Apparatus for production of patterned pile fabric



Dec. 3, 1968 j ucus ET A1. 3,413,823

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCTION OF PATTERNED PILE FABRIC Filed Feb. '7, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS ABRAHAM J. BEUCUS PATRICK J, FORDE BY 5M 166M M mag ATTORNEYS Dec. 3, 1968 j BEUCUS ET AL 3,413,823

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCTION OF PATTERNED PILE FABRIC 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 7. 1966 ABRAHAM J. BEUCUS PATRICK J FORDE BY mm, e, Maj

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ATTORNEYS Dec. 3, 1968 A. J. BEUCUS E AL 3,413,823

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCTION OF PATTERNED FILE FABRIC Filed Feb. '7, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 muniiiilhiiliiiiiiiiiiliiiiiiiiiimiigiiiiiiiimiiminimhim gm iiiiiiiiiji iiinmmmn mun iiiiiiimiinmm 52-\ 61 J9 e'b so 46b $60 eb 4s ll'l'a' i ilihllllllll lll l l INVENTORY ABRAHAM J. BEUCUS PATRICK J. FORDE y 5%., QM, My,

ATTORNEY-6 United States Patent 3,413,823 APPARATUS FOR PRODUCTION OF PATTERNED PILE FABRIC Abraham John Beucus, Delavan, Wis., and Patrick Joseph Forde, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, assignors to Amphenol Corporation, Broadview, 111., a corporation of Delaware Filed Feb. 7, 1966, Ser. No. 525,554 5 Claims. (Cl. 66-9) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A deep pile knitting machine is equipped for quantity production of fabric having walewise pattern effects. A number of body yarn and pile fiber feed stations are located about a needle cylinder. At each station, different types of pile fibers are delivered to axially spaced portions of a doffer, and the knitting needles are selectively raised into contact With the doffer portions to pick up one or the other or both types of pile fibers. Selectivity is accomplished by providing the individual needles of the set with butts of different lengths for cooperation with stationary cams adjacent the needle cylinder.

This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for making patterned deep pile knitted fabrics and to novel fabric constructions adapted to be manufactured commercially through the use of the improved apparatus. The invention is concerned particularly with the production of longitudinally extending, or walewise, pattern effects such as stripes in circular knit deep pile fabrics.

In a typical commercial installation, deep pile fabrics are manufactured on circular knitting machines equipped with carding means that take fibers from slivers, or other loosely bound fiber assemblies, and supply these fibers to the hook portions of the knitting needles. Body yarns also are supplied to the hook portions of the knitting needles, and as the needles are manipulated to draw the body yarns into interlocked loops, the pile fibers supplied by the carding means are bound in with the body yarn loops. The end portions of the fibers project from the body yarn loops to form a pile surface on the knitted fabric. Ordinarily, air jets are directed toward the hook portions of the needles so as to dispose the pile fibers on the inside surface of the circular knit fabric. After the knitting operation, the tubular fabric is slit longitudinally and subjected to suitable finishing treatments such as shearing and the like.

Proposals for the production of longitudinally extending pattern effects such as stripes in these knitted pile fabrics have been advanced heretofore. See for example United States Patent 1,894,596 to Moore and United States Patent 2,953,002 to Hill. However, these proposals were not entirely adequate and a need for improved apparatus has continued to exist.

It is an object of this invention to provide apparatus capable of knitting at high production rates pile fabrics having a wide variety of carefully controlled longitudinal pattern effects. Through use of the improved apparatus one can achieve a high degree of precision in patterning without any sacrifice in knitting machine production capacity.

Other objects of the invention include the provision of novel fabric constructions embodying improved patterning effects. These fabrics can advantageously be manufactured through the use of the apparatus of the invention.

In a preferred embodiment of apparatus constructed in accordance with the invention, body yarns are supplied to the hook portions of the knitting needles of a circular 3,413,823 Patented Dec. 3, 1968 ice knitting machine at each of a plurality of feed stations located at intervals about the periphery of the needle cylinder and pile fibers having different characteristics are selectively supplied to the hook portions of individual ones of the needles just prior to the point at which each body yarn is supplied. Just after receiving a body yarn, each needle is actuated in the conventional manner to form a body yarn stitch having the pile fibers protruding therefrom. Carding apparatus located at each feed station takes fibers from a plurality of slivers and delivers fibers from the respective slivers to axially spaced portions of a doffer disposed adjacent the periphery of the needle cylinder. As the needle cylinder rotates, the individual knitting needles move successively past one portion of the doffer and then the other portion of the doffer in their travel toward the adjacent body yarn feed station. The individual knitting needles are provided with laterally protruding butt portions, and stationary cam means are disposed in proximity to the periphery of the rotating needle cylinder at each feed station in position to be contacted by the needle butts to control the positions of the needle hooks with respect to the doffer.

Selectivity in fiber pickup is achieved through the use of needle butts of different lengths and an arrangement of cam surfaces capable of causing the needles to follow different paths. For example, long butt needles may be moved into contact with one portion of the doffer to pick up fibers therefrom, short butt needles may be moved into contact with the other doffer portion, and needles bearing butts of an intermediate length may be brought into contact with both of the doffer portions.

One of the novel fabrics capable of being produced through the use of this apparatus is a deep pile fabric that simulates in appearance and texture a natural fur piece formed by seaming together animal pelts. The desired effects are achieved by attaching to different Wales 0f the base fabric different pile fiber contents. Some Wales have projtecting therefrom only short, light-colored pile fibers; some have only long, dark-colored pile fibers; and some have both the short, light-colored fibers and the long, dark-colored fibers. Controlled wale-to-wale pile density variations also play an important role in giving the fabric the proper feel characteristics.

Another particularly desirable deep pile fabric capable of being produced in accordance with the invention is a longitudinally striped fabric in which the stripe effect is accentuated by attaching to the body yarn stitches defining one edge of each of the stripes an extra quantity of pile fibers. These extra quantities of pile of one color strengthen the color-change effect at the stripe boundaries.

A more complete understanding of the invention will be gained from a consideration of the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic plan view illustrating a circular knitting machine constructed in accordance with the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a diagrammatic elevational view depicting one of the pile fiber carding and feeding units of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view through a portion of the needle cylinder of the apparatus of FIGURE 1, illustrating the operative relationship between a knitting needle and the doffer of one of the pile fiber carding and feeding units;

FIGURE 4 is an elevational view of the cam means for controlling the positions of the knitting needles relative to the fiber supplying doffer at one of the feed stations, portions of the needles and the doffer being shown to indicate the effects produced by the various cam surfaces;

FIGURE 5 is a line diagram showing the paths followed by the diiferent types of knitting needles as they pass through one of the feed stations on the machine;

FIGURES 6, 7 and 8 are perspective views of individual ones of the cam members of the assembly shown in FIG- URE 4; and

FIGURES 9 and 10 are vertical cross-sectional views illustrating the effects produced by the various cam surfaces on needle butts of different lengths.

The general arrangement of the components of the apparatus will be evident from FIGURES 1 and 2. Stationary frame means suggested at 2 serves to support a rotating needle cylinder 4 carrying vertically reciprocable knitting needles 6 in slots or grooves on its periphery. As the needle cylinder 4 rotates past a feed station A, the knitting needles 6 are moved upwardly in sequence to receive in their hook portions pile fibers from a carding and feeding unit 8 and a body yarn 10 from supply means indicated at 12. Then each needle is moved downwardly to draw a loop of the body yarn 10 through a previously formed body yarn loop, to cast off such previously formed loop, and to cause the pile fibers to become interlocked with the body yarn loops. This sequence is repeated at each of the remaining stations B, C and D, so that four courses of body yarn stitches are formed during each revolution of the cylinder. Air jets, not shown, are directed toward the needles 6 in the customary manner to orient the pile fibers so that they protrude from the body yarn loops toward the interior of the knitted tube.

The number of the stations A, B, etc., should be as great as is permitted by space limitations and the like, because the rate of fabric production is a function of the number of feeds and economy is of utmost importance in the manufacture of deep pile knitted fabrics. Four feed stations have been illustrated in FIGURE 1 as exemplary of suitable high production equipment. In practice the invention has been applied successfully in machines having as many as five feeds and operated to produce five courses of knitted stitches during each revolution of the cylinder.

Each of the pile fiber carding and feeding units 8 includes a pair of sliver feed rollers 14, a licker-in 16, a main drum 18, a transfer roll 20, and a doffer 22. These components are rotated in the directions indicated by the arrows in FIGURE 2, and all of them except the sliver feed rollers 14 bear conventional card clothing 24 on their peripheries. However, as indicated in FIGURE 1, there is a centrally located gap in the card clothing on each of the components 16, 18, and 22. By reason of these gaps in the card clothing, the unit 8 is divided into two axially spaced apart fiber paths.

In accordance with the invention, slivers of difierent types are supplied to each of the units 8. In FIGURE 1 the numerals 26 and 28 have been applied to two slivers that differ from one another in color and/or in some other characteristic. For purposes of explanation, it will be convenient to assume that the fibers of the slivers 26 are white and that the fibers in the slivers 28 are gray. The two types of slivers are delivered to axially spaced portions of the feed rolls 14 and the gaps in the card clothing served to keep the fibers from the respective slivers in spaced paths as they move through the unit 8. Hence, the card clothing at one end portion 22a of the doifer 22 will be supplied continuously with white fibers from the sliver 26 and the card clothing at the other end porton 22b of the doffer will be supplied continuously with gray fibers from the sliver 28.

The manner in which the knitting needles 6 are caused to cooperate with the doffers 22 of the various fiber carding and feeding units 8 will now be explained in connection with FIGURES 3 through 10. These views illustrate in some detail the structures located at one of the feed stations, and it will be understood that the other stations are similar.

In the illustrated embodiment, three types of knitting needles are positioned in the slots 30 at the periphery of the needle cylinder 4. All of these needles are provided with laterally extending portions called butts. However some of the butts are longer than others. Some needles 6a have short butts 32, some needles 6b have long butts 34, and some needles 60 have butts 36 of intermediate length.

The vertical positions of the knitting needles are controlled by stationary cam means disposed adjacent the periphery of the rotating needle cylinder 4 at each of the stations A, B, etc. As is conventional, a base casting 38 overlies the radially projecting portion of the ring gear 40 to which the needle cylinder 4 is attached. The base casting 38 is fixed, as by screw means 42, to the machine frame 2. At its inner edge the base casting 38 is provided with an upwardly extending annular flange 44 to which the cam means serving the various stations A, B, etc., may be secured.

An arcuate cam block 46 is fixed on the base casting 38 at each station as by means of screws 48 (FIGURE 9). The cam block in turn serves as a support for arcuate cams 50, 52 and 54. Another arcuate cam 56 is fastened directly to the inner face of the flange 44 on the base casting 38 at each of the stations A, B, etc. The spacial relationships between the edges of the cams 50, 52, S4 and 56 and the periphery of the needle cylinder 4 are related to the lengths of the needle butts 32, 34 and 36. The short needle butts 32 can be acted upon only by the surfaces of the innermost cams and 56. The intermediate length needle butts 36 protrude outwardly from the cylinder far enough to be acted upon by the surfaces of an additional cam 54, and the long needle butts 34 extend into the zone of action of still another cam 52.

The effects attributable to the various cam surfaces can best be explained by tracing the paths of various types of needles through the assembly shown in FIGURE 4. As the needle cylinder rotates the individual knitting needles will move from right to left in FIGURE 4.

The path of a needle 6a having a short butt 32 will be considered first. This path is designated 57 in FIGURE 5. As the needle 6a moves into the vicinity of the doffer 22, its butt 32 will contact an inclined surface 58 on the cam 56 and the needle 6a will be moved upwardly in its slot 30 (FIGURE 3) on the needle cylinder 4 to a position such that the hook portion 60 at the upper en of the needle is just below the card clothing 24 on the doffer section 22a. The needle 6a retains this elevation throughout its traverse of the doifer section 22a, so that its hook portion 60 does not enter the card clothing to pick up white pile fibers therefrom. In the zone where there is no card clothing 24 on the dotfer 22, the needle 6a is given another lift as its butt 32 rides up along an inclined surface 62 of the cam 56. This additional lift positions the hook portion 60 of the needle 61; at a level such that it may enter the card clothing 24 on the dofier section 2212 to pick up gray fibers therefrom. During its traverse across the doffer section 22b, the needle 6a is retained in its fully elevated position by frictional engagement with the walls of its slot 30 in the needle cylinder and by the holding action of a spring 64 disposed in a circumferential slot 66 (FIGURE 3) in the needle cylinder 4.

The path followed by a needle 6b having a long butt 34 is designated 68 in FIGURE 5. As the needle 61 moves into the vicinity of the doffer 22, its butt 34 will contact an inclined surface 70 on the cam 54 and the needle will be moved upwardly in its slot 30 on the needle cylinder 4 far enough to permit its hook portion to enter the card clothing 24 on the dotfer section 22a, so that white pile fibers will be picked up by the hook portion of the needle. In the central zone where there is no card clothing 24 on the doffer 22, the butt 34 of the needle 6b will contact a downwardly inclined surface 72 on the cam 52 and the needle 6b will be lowered in its slot 30 sufiiciently to permit its hook portion 60 to pass beneath the card clothing 24 on the doffer section 22b without picking up pile fibers therefrom. It should be observed that the cam 56 is relieved at 74 so as not to interfere with the desired downward movements of the needles 6b.

The path of a needle 60 having a butt 36 of intermediate length is designated 75 in FIGURE 5. The initial portion of the path 75 is the same as the initial portion of the path 68 followed by the long butt needles 6b. The butt 36 on each needle 6c contacts the inclined surface 70 on the cam 54 and the needle 60 is elevated far enough to permit entry of its hook portion into the card clothing 24 on the doffer section 22a. However, the intermediate length butt 36 is not long enough to reach to the cam 52. Consequently, the needle 6c is not lowered by the inclined Surface 72 on the cam 52 and such needle remains in an elevated position as it moves by the second doffer section 221). Although there is no cam surface beneath the butt 36 in the zone of the doffer section 2212, the frictional forces between the needle 60 and the walls of its slot 30 in the needle cylinder 4 and the forces exerted by the spring 64 (FIGURE 3) are sufficient to retain the hook portion 69 of the needle at the elevation required for proper pile fiber pickup action.

It will now be understood that the knitting needles of the different types 6a, 6b, and 6c, acquire different pile fiber loads as they traverse the doffer 22. Since effective fiber pickup can be achieved only when the hook portions of the needles are actually inserted into the card clothing on the doifer, the short butt needles 6a acquire few if any of the white fibers carried by the doifer section 22a but they do pick up the gray fibers carried by the dotfer section 22b. Similarly, the fiber load acquired by each of the long butt needles 6b consist substantially of the white fibers supplied by the doffer section 22a. The needles 6c of the third type cooperate effectively with both of the doffer sections 22a and 22b, picking up both white fibers and gray fibers.

After leaving the fiber pickup zone, all of the knitting needles are given motions appropriate for effective body yarn pickup and stitch formation. An upwardly inclined surface 76 on the cam 56 contacts all of the needle butts 32, 34 and 36, and the various knitting needles are raised in whatever amounts may be required to position them at the proper level for receiving the body yarn in their hook portions 60. A downwardly inclined surface 78 on the upper cam 50 guides all of the needle butts down along a similarly inclined surface 80 on the cam 56, and then a conventional stitch cam 82 is contacted by all of the needle butts. As the needle butts 32, 34 and 36 are I guided along the downwardly inclined surface 84 on the stitch cam 82, the hook portions of the knitting needles move downwardly between adjacent ones of the sinkers 86 carried by the sinker ring 88 in the conventional manner, so that a loop portion of the nearly supplied body yarn 10 will be drawn through a previously formed loop which rides up over the needle latch and is cast off. The sinker cap 90 and the other components associated with the sinkers 86 are conventional and they need not be described here in detail.

The particular longitudinally extending, or walewise, pattern effects achieved during use of the illustrated apparatus will depend upon the order or sequence of the needles of the various types 6a, 6b and 60 on the periphery of the needle cylinder and also upon the nature of the slivers 26 and 28 fed to the various supply units 8. A detailed description of the mode of production of the novel simulated fur fabric of this invention will serve to clarify the patterning capabilities of the equipment.

In setting up the machine for the production of the simulated for fabric, the needles 6 are disposed about the periphery of the needle cylinder 4 in repeating groups of twenty-five needles each. Within each group or repeat the order or sequence of needles of different types is as follows:

Four long butt needles 611; One medium butt needle 6c; Four long butt needles 6b; Eight medium butt needles 60; Four short butt needles 6a; and Eight medium butt needles 6c.

The slivers 26 are made up of three denier artificial fibers cut to one inch staple lengths and having a white or very light gray color. The slivers 28 are made up of twenty-four denier artificial fibers cut to two inch staple lengths and having a darker gray color. The use of acrylic or modified acrylic fibers has been found to be particularly suitable. In one embodiment fibers of the type sold under the trade designation Orlon were used in the sliver 26, and fibers of the types sold under the trade designation Verel were used for the sliver 28. In this particular embodiment, the Orlon sliver 26 was slightly heavier than the Verel sliver 28, the weight ratio being approximately sixty to forty. A ten ounce Dynel body yarn 10 may be employed.

With the apparatus set up in the manner just described, the short butt needles 6a pick up only the relatively long and relatively heavy fibers of the darker shade supplied by the slivers 28. The long butt needles 6b pick up only the relatively short and relatively lightweight fibers of lighter shade supplied by the slivers 26. The medium butt needles 60 pick up fibers from both of the slivers 26 and 28, so that they are loaded with a fiber blend. Being in contact with the fiber supplying portions of the doffer 22 for a much longer time interval than the needles 6a or 612, the medium butt needles 6c acquire charges of significantly greater density than the charges acquired by the short butt needles 6:: or the long butt needles 6b.

In visualizing the pattern effects produced, one must keep in mind the fact that the knitted stitches formed by any given knitting needle in the machine define precisely a wale, or longitudinally extending row of stitches, in the fabric. Moreover, since any given needle will acquire the same type of pile fiber charge each time it passes one of the feed stations on the knitting machine, the pile also will be oriented in longitudinally extending rows.

The knitted tube formed on the knitting machine will have the pile fibers disposed on the interior face of the tube. This pile will vary in fiber content in accordance with the needle sequence described above. Specifically, a single coursewise repeat of the pattern will include longitudinal rows of the following widths and fiber contents: four wales containing only the short white fibers from the slivers 26; one wale containing a greater fiber content made up of fibers from both the slivers 26 and the slivers 28; four wales containing only the short white fibers from the slivers 26; eight wales containing the heavy blend; four wales containing only the long darker fibers from the sliver 28; and eight Wales containing the blend.

This tubular fabric is slit longitudinally and then subjected to suitable finishing treatments. Although these treatments are individually well known and need not be described in detail here, it may be helpful to refer briefiy to a particular sequence of treatments that has been found suitable in the production of the simulated fur fabric. The backing or body fabric should first be stabilized, as by a heat-setting treatment. Then the pile surface is processed to enhance its appearance. For example, the pile may be sheared, then polished, sheared again, subjected to a silicone spray, polished again, and then given a final shearing treatment.

The finished fabric has many desirable characteristics. The pile fibers of different lengths and shades give blend effects much like those which are observed in the natural pelts used for fur garments. Also, there are variations in pile density which appeal to the sense of touch. Most of the fabric wales are formed on the medium butt needles 6c, and the pile in these Wales is composed of short fibers underlying and supporting the longer fibers. The density of the pile carried by the wales formed on the long butt needles 6b and the short butt needles 6a is substantially less. By interspersing the rows of relatively low density pile among the rows of relatively high density pile in the manner described, a lining effect is attained. This lining effect is not unlike that produced by the seaming together of natural pelts, as far as the sense of touch is concerned.

Although reference has been made to the use of three different types of needles 6a, 6b and 6c in the illustrated apparatus, it is not essential that all three types always be used concurrently. Desirable patterns can be produced when the needle complement for the knitting machine cylinder 4 is composed of needles of only two of the three basic types. One might use short butt needles in combination with long butt needles, or short butt needles in combination with medium butt needles, or long butt needles in combination with medium butt needles. One such combination is employed in the production of a novel striped fabric of this invention, and the description of the procedure for making such fabric will serve to illustrate further the patterning potentials of the apparatus.

In setting up the apparatus for the production of the novel striped fabric, the knitting needles 6 are disposed about the periphery of the needle cylinder 4 in repeating groups of ten needles each. Within each group or repeat, the order or sequence of needles of different types is four long butt needles 6b followed by six short butt needles 6a. The fibers making up the supply slivers 26 and 28 may be similar in denier, length and composition, but contrasting colors are employed. For example, the slivers 26 may be composed of gold colored fibers, and the slivers 28 may be composed of blue fibers.

During the knitting operation, the long butt needles 6b pick up only the gold fibers delivered to the doffer sections 22a, and the short butt needles 6a pick up only the blue fibers delivered to the doffer sections 22b. Hence, the fabric produced has a pile surface in which gold stripes four wales wide alternate with blue stripes six wales wide. These stripes extend longitudinally of the fabric.

Within each of the stripes there are slight wale-to-wale differences in pile fiber content which serve to accentuate the pattern. This effect results from a slight fiber build up on portions of the doffer sections 22a and 22b. The situation can be best understood by visualizing the different fiber load conditions encountered by the first and last short butt needles in agiven set of six adjacent short butt needles as these needles move through the card clothing on a doffer section 22b. The first short butt needle in the group encounters card clothing that has not delivered up its fiber content for some time, because the immediately preceding needles in the sequence are long butt needles which pass beneath the clothing on the doffer section 2212. However, the last of the short butt needles of the set of six encounters card clothing that has given up fibers to each of the immediately preceding five needles. The result is that the first needle of the set of six picks up more fiber than the last of the set of six. Similarly, the first needle of each set of four long butt needles picks up more pile fiber than the last.

These variations in pile fiber density contribute to pattern definition in the striped deep pile fabric. At each color change zone there is a Wale containing a relatively high density of pile of one of the two colors. This greater density serves to give an intensified color effect along this Wale even though the differently colored pile fibers at the striped boundary may be intermingled to some extent. I

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, many other pattern effects can be achieved through the use of the principles of the invention. For example, if it be desired to produce a fabric in which there are color or texture variations within a given Wale, the illustrated apparatus may be set up to deliver to a particular doffer section at one of the feed stations fibers that differ from those delivered to the corresponding doffer section at another feed station. Also, the nature of the fibers supplied to a given doffer section may be varied from time to time during operation of the equipment, as for example through the use of the techniques described in the US. Patent 3,122,904 to Brandt.

Still other modifications and variations will suggest themselves to persons skilled in the art. It is intended therefore that the foregoing detailed description be con sidered as exemplary only, and that the scope of the invention be ascertained from the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In deep pile fabric knitting apparatus of the type in which an upright rotatable needle cylinder carries an endless succession of knitting needles through a plurality of circumferentially spaced feed stations where pile fibers and body yarns are supplied to the needles and in which the needles are actuated after passing each f such feed stations to form interlocked body yarn loops having pile fibers attached thereto, the combination which comprises:

a doffer cylinder above and adjacent the path of the needle cylinder at each of the feed stations, each of said doffer cylinders being rotatable about a stationary axis and including a first surface portion formed of card clothing and a second surface portion formed of card clothing and being spaced apart from said first surface portion in the direction of rotation of said needle cylinder;

fiber carding and feeding means associated with each of said doffer cylinders and each including instrumentalities for delivering fibers from one source to the first surface portion and fibers from another source to the second surface portion of the associated doffer cylinder; and

means adjacent said needle cylinder at each of said feed stations for selectively raising certain of said needles in advance of said first doffer surface portion and lowering at least some of these needles in the space between said doffer surface portions to permit each of these needles to take pile fiber from substantially the entire width of said first surface portion, and

for selectively raising others of said needles in the space between said doffer surface portions and lowering these needles after they have passed said second doffer surface portion to permit each of these needles to take pile fiber from substantially the entire width of said second surface portion.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means adjacent said needle cylinder at each of said feed stations selectively raises certain of said needles in advance of said first doffer surface portion and lOWers all of these needles in the space between said doffer surface portions.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means adjacent said needle cylinder at each of said feed stations selectively raises certain of said needles in advance of said said first doffer surface portion and lowers less than all of these needles in the space between said doffer surface portions whereby those of the needles which were not so lowered may take pile fiber also from said second doffer surface portion.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said knitting needles include a first group of needles each provided with a long butt projecting radially from the needle cylinder and a second group of needles each provided with a short butt projecting radially from the needle cylinder, the needles of said second group being interspersed among the needles of said first group, and wherein said means adjacent said needle cylinder at each of said feed stations includes stationary cam surfaces cooperating respectively with said long and short needle butts.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4 wherein said knitting needles include a third group of needles each provided With an intermediate length butt projecting radially from the needle cylinder, the needles of said third group being interspersed among the needles of said first and second groups in accordance with a pattern, and wherein said stationary cam surfaces cooperate With said needle butts for raising and lowering said needles to cause the needles of said first group to pick up pile fiber from only said first dofier surface portion, to cause the needles of said UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,894,596 1/1933 Moore 669 2,953,002 9/1960 Hill 669 3,023,596 3/1962 Hill 66-9 XR ROBERT R. MACKEY, Primary Examiner. 

